Pipe-like smoking device for use with tobacco cartridges

ABSTRACT

A pipelike smoking device for use with cartridges of tobacco. A mouthpiece, a bowl constructed to hold the cartridge, and a stem provide communication from the stem through the bowl to the cartridge. The stem projects into the bowl and penetrates the cartridge to provide the communication between the mouthpiece and the interior of the cartridge. Concurrently, the stem releasably retains the cartridge within the bowl.

United States Patent n 13,625,227

[72] Inventors KennethB.Fether; 1,065,008 6/1913 Tufts 131/225 David B. L. Brlckwood; Peter Steer 1,564,500 12/1925 Van De Voorde 131/225 X Sampson, all of London, England 1,862,133 6/1932 Bayan 131/3 [21] Appl. No. 848,514 2,159,698 5/1939 Harris et a1.. 131/225 UX [22] Filed Aug. 8, 1969 2,391,548 12/1945 Comptois.... 131/225 X [45] Patented Dec. 7, 1971 2,746,459 5/1956 Coble 131/225 X [73] Assignee Imperial Tobacco Group Limited 3,079,927 3/1963 Fassbender 131/225 X Bristol England Primary Examiner-Joseph S. Reich Attorney-Larson and Taylor [54] PIPE-LIKE SMOKING DEVICE FOR USE WITH TOBACCO CARTRIDGES 7 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.

13 V ABSTRACT: A pipelike smoking device for use with car- [51] Int. Cl A24 5/00 ridges f wbacco, A momhpiece, a b constructed to hold [50] Field ofSearch l3l/3,225, the cartridge, and a stem provide communication f the 15 C stem through the bowl to the cartridge. The stem projects into the bowl and enetrates the cartrid e to rovide the commu- [56] References Cited nication betwgen the mouthpiece ar ld the interior of the car- UNITED STATES PATENTS tridge. Concurrently, the stem releasably retains the cartridge 191,544 6/1877 Oberg 131/225 X within the bowl.

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PATENTED DEC 7 IEIYI SHEET 2 OF 4 3 PATENTED DEC 1197: 3525227 SHEET u [If 4 PIPE-LIKE SMOKING DEVICE FOR USE WITH TOBACCO CARTRIDGES This invention concerns a pipelike smoking device adapted for use with apertured cartridges, e.g. of the type described and claimed in our copending US. application Ser. No. 848,483, filed Aug. 8, 1969.

According to the present invention there is provided a pipelike smoking device adapted for use with cartridges of tobacco and comprising a mouthpiece, a cavitied holder for holding the tobacco cartridge, and a stern providing communication between the mouthpiece and the holder, said stern being adapted to project into the cavity for penetration into a cartridge therein to provide. communication between said mouthpiece and the interior of a cartridge.

Preferably the stem is adapted to retain the cartridge within the holder when in communication therewith.

The stem may be movable relative to the holder between a first position in which the stem projects into the cavity and a second position in which the stem is withdrawn from the cavi- The stem is preferably movable manually to remain in either position.

Alternatively however the stern may be spring-biased towards one of said two positions.

In one embodiment the stem may be biased towards said first position and is adapted to be deflected therefrom momentarily upon insertion of a cartridge, the stem then returning to its first position to penetrate and communicate with the inserted cartridge.

Preferably the stem is connected to and forms an extension of the mouthpiece of smoking device for movement therewith. The invention also includes a smoking device as set forth above including a tobacco cartridge apertured or aperturable by said stem for penetration thereby.

The cartridge may comprise a tobacco rod held in an apertured support, the support being adapted to rest within the holder cavity with its aperture aligned with said stem for penetration thereby and communication therewith.

Preferably the tobacco rod portion of said cartridge is disposed within the enlarged passage defined with said bowl, an annular space being provided therebetween.

The invention is illustrated merely by way of example in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a tobacco cartridge and pipelike smoking device according to the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional elevation of the tobacco cartridge shown in FIG. 1 taken in the direction of arrow A of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional elevation of the components shown in FIG. 1 in their assembled form,

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the device shown in FIG. 3,

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary central sectional view of an altemative form of smoking device with cartridge, in accordance with the present invention,

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary central sectional view of yet another smoking device and cartridge in accordance with the present invention, and

FIGS. 7 and 8 are fragmentary central sectional and plan views of a further smoking device and cartridge according to the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, and in particular FIGS. 1 to 4, a tobacco cartridge comprises a charge 10 of tobacco held in a support 11 The tobacco charge 10 is in the form of a cylindrical rod comprising tobacco filler I2 enclosed within a sheath 13 of reconstituted tobacco leaf. This tobacco rod is formed on a continuous rod making machine and is cut into sections for attachment to the support 11.

The support 11 comprises an upper cylindrical cuplike portion 14 and a lower substantially rectangular enclosed chamber 15. The cylindrical cuplike portion 14 has disposed therein a conventional smoke filter l6 e.g. of acetate tow and, in abutment therewith, a filter plug 17 of noncombustible material e.g. a ceramic material. The upper surface of the filter plug 17 as shown. in FIGS. 1 and 2 is above the upper end of the support 11. The tobacco charge 10, which is of the same diameter as portion 14 rests in abutment with the upper surface of the filter plug 17. The tobacco charge 10 and the support 14 are interconnected by a paper band 20 which encircles the tobacco rod and the support with filter l7 therebetween holding them together.

The lower substantially rectangular chamber 15 is completely enclosed but one wall thereof is provided with a circular aperture 21.

The tobacco charge support 11 described above is preferably formed of polystyrene by an injection moulding process. However, it will be appreciated that the support is not restricted to this material or the method of manufacture.

The pipelike smoking device itself comprises a bowl. A first section of which is a cartridge holder 30 which may be either injection moulded in a plastics material or die-cast in aluminum or similar metal. The cartridge holder comprises a substantially cylindrical body portion 31 provided with a generally cylindrical cavity 32 adapted to receive the tobacco cartridge. A hollow tube 33 is formed integral with one side of the main body 31 and the bore 34 of the tube communicates with the cavity 32.

The cavity 32 is generally cylindrical but of a shape complementary to that of the cartridge support 11 with the lower portion being adapted to receive the somewhat rectangular enclosed chamber 15 and the upper end of the cavity being cylindrical and adapted to seat the upper cylindrical cuplike portion 14.

The upper end of the cartridge support is provided with an external angular groove 35 adapted to seat a spring clip 36 to provide a resilient connection between the cartridge holder 30 and a bowl second section 40. The bowl second section 40 comprises a substantially cylindrical member having a tapered bore and the lower end being formed to cooperate with the upper end of cartridge holder 30. The bowl second section 40 can be of any desired shape and can of course be made in any desired material, e.g. wood or plastics. Again, instead of the push-fit interconnection between the bowl second section and the cartridge holder 30 a screw-threaded or any other suitable connection may be provided.

The pipelike smoking device also comprises a tubular stem 44 made preferably of thin wall steel having a tapered end 45 and an external annular groove 46 adapted to cooperate with a spring clip 47. The device also includes a bush 50 or metal of plastic adapted to be force fitted into the tube 33 to provide a frictional sliding surface for the tubular stem 44.

Finally, the smoking device comprises a mouthpiece preferably injection moulded in polycarbonate material and provided with an enlarged bore-52 at one end to provide a push fit connection with the tubular stem 44.

To assemble the device the bush 50 is inserted into tube 33 and the stem 44 is inserted within the bush 50 with the spring clip 47 positioned in the annular groove 46. An annular space 53 adjacent the end of the bore 34 provides a space within which the spring clip 47 can move, The assembled components are shown in FIG. 3. The tubular stem 44 is reciprocal within the bush 50 from the position shown in FIG. 3 to a retracted position in which the spring clip 47 abuts the end face of bush 50.

To use the device, the mouthpiece 51 and stem 44 are withdrawn from the holder 30 until the cavity 32 is free from the obstruction formed by the chamfered end 45 of the stem 44, i.e. until clip 47 abuts the end of bush 50. A tobacco cartridge is then inserted within cavity 32 until the cuplike portion 14 seats in the upper cylindrical portion of cavity 32. In this position the aperture 21 in the tobacco cartridge support will be aligned with the bore within the bush 50. The stem 44 and mouthpiece 51 are then pushed into'the cartridge holder until the chamfered end 45 of the stem 44 enters the hole 2l with the clip 47 abutting the wall of the cartridge support I1. This is the position shown in FIG. 3. In this position the tobacco cartridge is held firmly within the cartridge holder 30 and cannot be withdrawn. The device is then ready for smoking.

As clearly shown in FIG. 3 there is an annular space 60 between the sheath of the tobacco charge and the bore of the bowl second section 40. This annular space 60 provides a gap into which ash can fall from the tobacco charge. It will be appreciated that bowl second section 40 can be removed from holder 30 for cleaning purposes. Space 60 also provides the space for air circulation to support combustion of the tobacco. It will be appreciated that the bowl second section 40 can be apertured or perforated to provide additional air if this is required.

It will also be noted that the chamber is relatively large compared with the remainder of the pipe and the aperture 21 is disposed at least halfway up the sidewall of the chamber. Thus the volume of the chamber 15 below aperture 21 provides a useful receptacle for goo produced during smoking. Additionally, the volume of the chamber 15 provides a condensation trap.

To empty the pipe, the mouthpiece 51 and stem 44 are withdrawn from the cartridge which with the pipe inverted, falls from the cartridge holder 30 together with any ash within bowl second section 40, into a suitable receptacle. A fresh charge can then be inserted in the manner described above. The bowl second section 40 need not be removed during recharging and emptying operations, but of course the bowl second section can be removed if desired for cleaning purposes.

Referring now to FIG. 5 this illustrates a pipelike device 70 comprising a mouthpiece 71 and an open holder or bowl 72 having a metal liner 73. The liner partially obstructs the lower aperture 74 of the bowl 72 with a lowermost cylindrical section 75 which is seated within a corresponding cylinder bore in the bowl 72.

Connected to the mouthpiece 71 and slidably disposed within a bore 76 in bowl 72 is a hollow stem 80 having a tapered end 81 and an aperture 82 open to the hollow interior of the stem.

The stem 80 is removable from within the bore or cavity of the bowl 72 by withdrawing mouthpiece 71. The stem 80 is then withdrawn through bore 76 to leave the interior of section 75 clear. A tobacco cartridge 84 can then be inserted into the bowl, within liner 75 to seat within section 75. Replacing stem 80 to the location shown in FIG. 5 will cause end 81 to pierce and penetrate the cartridge 84. The aperture 82 and hollow stem 80 provide communication between the interior of the cartridge and mouthpiece 71.

The remains of the cartridge can be removed by withdrawing stem 80.

It will be appreciated that the cartridge 84 can be of many different designs. Thus it could have a filter and/or a hollow chamber at its lower end with which stem 80 communicates.

Referring to FIG. 6, there is shown a pipelike device 90 having a bowl 91 and mouthpiece 92. Bowl 91 is provided with a metal liner 93 and is adapted to hold and retain a tobacco cartridge 94 similar to that described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. However the cartridge support 95 is provided with an aperture 96 having a peripheral conical seating 97 to accommodate the tapered end 98 of a stem 100. The stem 100 is slidably mounted within a bore 101 in bowl 91 and extends into mouthpiece 92. A flange 102 on the stem bears against a helical spring 103 which urges the stem towards the bowl cavity to the position shown in FIG. 6.

The lower edge of support 95 is chamfered at 104 whereby, insertion of the cartridge through bowl 91 will urge stem 100 against spring 103, the stem springing back in aperture 96 as soon as the aperture is aligned with the stem. In this position the cartridge is in communication with the mouthpiece through the hollow stem 100 and the cartridge is held against accidental removal. The cartridge can be removed by forcing it upwardly from the lower open ended bowl.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8 there is shown a device comprising a bowl 110 having a fixed half section 111 and a movable section 112 pivoted to section 111 about a hinge 113.

The fixed section 111 is attached to the mouthpiece 114. A stern 115 is fixed in a recess 116 in bowl section 111 to project into the cavity of the bowl.

To use the pipelike device, the section 112 of the bowl is pivoted away from section 111, a cartridge 120 having an apertured support 121 is fixed onto projecting stem 115 and the bowl closed once more. The cartridge is then in communication with mouthpiece 114 and is prevented from falling from the bowl. The used cartridge can be removed from the bowl by opening the bowl sections and withdrawing support 121 from stem 115.

With any of the smoking devices described above a variety of bowls can be provided to enable the smoker to vary the shape of the smoking device at will. In addition, the cartridge holder 30 need not be of the generally cylindrical form described but could, for example be spherical.

Referring to the cartridges used, the tobacco charge can be of any suitable form and can be enclosed within any suitable material. Thus paper could be employed in place of the reconstituted tobacco leaf sheet and indeed any suitable combustible or indeed incombustible material can be used. Thus the charge can be wrapped within metal foil which would serve to hold the ash remaining after combustion.

Again, instead of being in abutment with a filter plug and attached thereto by a paper encircling band, the tobacco charge could be held in the support by friction grip. The disadvantage of this arrangement is the probable incomplete combustion of the whole of the tobacco charge. Also the possibility of charring the cartridge support does exist. However, this can be overcome by suitably designing the cartridge if this method of support is to employed.

Clearly any number of filters can be used. To prevent combustion of filter material it is preferable to employ a noncombustible filter. If a single filter is used, it should be noncombustible e.g. a ceramic or an acetate filter treated with noncombustible material.

If apertured supports are used with the cartridges, the aperture need not be open as is described above. Thus the aperture could be covered with a rupturable sheet of material e.g. paper, as shown in dotted lines at 21 in FIG. 2, which the stem would puncture when moved into engagement therewith. In either case, the cartridge will be wrapped in protective foil or cellophane to provide a moisture barrier.

What we claim is:

1. A pipelike smoking device for use with cartridges of tobacco and comprising a mouthpiece, a bowl constructed to receive and hold a tobacco cartridge, and a stem providing communication between the mouthpiece and the bowl, said stem including means projecting into the bowl, penetrating said cartridge and providing communication between said mouthpiece and the interior of the cartridge and releasably retaining said cartridge within the bowl.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the projecting means of said stem is moveable relative to the bowl between a first position in which the stem projects into the cartridge and a second position in which the stem is withdrawn from the bowl.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the stem is moveable manually to remain in either position.

4. A device as claimed in claim 2, including means for spring biasing the stem towards the first position such that the stem is defiectable therefrom momentarily upon insertion of a cartridge, returning to its first position under the influence of said spring biasing means to penetrate and communicate with the inserted cartridge.

5. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bowl is composed of two sections, and wherein a first section comprises a holder, which has means providing a general cylindrical cavity for holding the cartridge and a means providing a general cylindrical bore, disposed at an angle to said cavity means with said bore means housing the stern therein, and a second section which is removably secured to the holder and which is of an enlarged cross-sectional area compared with said cavity means of said first section.

thereby and communication therewith, the tobacco rod portion of said cartridge being disposed within the enlarged crosssectional area of said bowl, an annular space being provided therebetween. 

1. A pipelike smoking device for use with cartridges of tobacco and comprising a mouthpiece, a bowl constructed to receive and hold a tobacco cartridge, and a stem providing communication between the mouthpiece and the bowl, said stem including means projecting into the bOwl, penetrating said cartridge and providing communication between said mouthpiece and the interior of the cartridge and releasably retaining said cartridge within the bowl.
 2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the projecting means of said stem is moveable relative to the bowl between a first position in which the stem projects into the cartridge and a second position in which the stem is withdrawn from the bowl.
 3. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the stem is moveable manually to remain in either position.
 4. A device as claimed in claim 2, including means for spring biasing the stem towards the first position such that the stem is deflectable therefrom momentarily upon insertion of a cartridge, returning to its first position under the influence of said spring biasing means to penetrate and communicate with the inserted cartridge.
 5. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bowl is composed of two sections, and wherein a first section comprises a holder, which has means providing a general cylindrical cavity for holding the cartridge and a means providing a general cylindrical bore, disposed at an angle to said cavity means with said bore means housing the stem therein, and a second section which is removably secured to the holder and which is of an enlarged cross-sectional area compared with said cavity means of said first section.
 6. A device as claimed in claim 5, including a tobacco cartridge apertured for penetration by said stem.
 7. A device as claimed in claim 6, wherein the cartridge comprises a tobacco rod held in an apertured support, the support being adapted to rest within the holder cavity means with its aperture means aligned with said stem for penetration thereby and communication therewith, the tobacco rod portion of said cartridge being disposed within the enlarged cross-sectional area of said bowl, an annular space being provided therebetween. 